UW vs. Oregon St.

Herald Staff

Kickoff: 7 p.m., at Husky Stadium

TV, radio: Fox Sports Net, KOMO radio (1000 AM).

Washington: 3-1, 0-1 in Pacific-10 Conference play.

Oregon State: 4-0, 1-0 in Pac-10 play.

Washington: Rick Neuheisel, 43-20-0 in his sixth season overall, 10-6 in his second at Washington.

Oregon State: Dennis Erickson, 124-45-1 in his 16th season overall, 11-5 in his second at Oregon State.

Washington: Quarterback Marques Tuiasosopo is having a disappointing (for him) season with seven interceptions in four games. There’s a lot of blame to go around – a mediocre running game, an offensive line that hasn’t played its best game yet, no receivers capable of big plays – but the Huskies need a breakout game. Neuheisel, looking for a more physical back, will give freshman Rich Alexis more carries, which will give the Huskies a more varied look when Paul Arnold comes out. The defense has been solid, with nose tackle Larry Tripplett and free safety Hakim Akbar having All-America-type seasons.

Oregon State: Tailback Ken Simonton ran for 234 yards against USC and must be slowed down for the Huskies to have a decent shot. Quarterback Jonathan Smith is having an off year (43-percent passing), which puts even greater emphasis on Simonton. The Beavers are fourth in the nation in rushing defense and sixth in total defense. Linebacker Darnell Robinson is small (6 feet, 207 pounds) but is all over the place, and strong safety Terrence Carroll will play on Sundays.

Washington: WR Chris Juergens (knee) is out.

Oregon State: DB Luke Scott (arm) is out; LB James Allen (hip) is probable; G Robert Sykes (ankle) is probable.

Washington: The Huskies need to get the offense on track, and that might be difficult against an OSU defense that coach Dennis Erickson says is as fast as any he had at Miami. Washington’s offensive line has to play more aggressively than it did against Oregon to get the running game going. Go after Smith, especially on third-and-long.

Oregon State: Simonton, Simonton, Simonton. Continue to force turnovers on defense and stay away from turnovers on offense. This is a winnable game for the Beavers if they don’t let the crowd intimidate them. And their defense is quick enough – quicker than even Oregon – to give Washington problems.

Bottom line: The victory against USC gave Oregon State some credibility. As long as Simonton is standing and the Beavers don’t make mistakes, they have a better-than-even chance.

Pick: Oregon State, 28-27.

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